tick 1 (t?k)n.1. A light, sharp, clicking sound made repeatedly by a machine, such as a clock.2. Chiefly British A moment.3. A light mark used to check off or call attention to an item.4. Informal A unit on a scale; a degree: when interest rates move up a tick.v. ticked, tick·ing, ticks v.intr.1. To emit recurring clicking sounds: as the clock ticked.2. To function characteristically or well: machines ticking away; curious about what makes people tick.v.tr.1. To count or record with the sound of ticks: a clock ticking the hours; a taxi meter ticking the fare.2. To mark or check off (a listed item) with a tick: ticked off each name on the list.Phrasal Verb: tick off Informal To make angry or annoyed: Constant delays ticked me off.[Middle English tik, light tap.]tick 2 (t?k)n.1. Any of various small bloodsucking arachnids of the order Ixodida that are parasitic on terrestrial vertebrates. Many species transmit diseases, such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease.2. Any of various usually wingless insects that resemble a tick, such as a sheep ked.[Middle English tike, tik, perhaps from Old English *ticca.]tick 3 (t?k)n.1. a. A cloth case for a mattress or pillow.b. A light mattress without inner springs.2. Ticking.[Middle English tikke, probably from Middle Dutch t?ke, ultimately from Latin th?ca, receptacle, from Greek th?k?; see dh?- in Indo-European roots.]tick 4 (t?k)n. Chiefly British Credit or an amount of credit.[Short for ticket.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.tick (t?k) n1. a recurrent metallic tapping or clicking sound, such as that made by a clock or watch2. informal Brit a moment or instant3. a mark (?) or dash used to check off or indicate the correctness of something4. (Commerce) commerce the smallest increment of a price fluctuation in a commodity exchange. Tick size is usually 0.01% of the nominal value of the trading unitvb5. to produce a recurrent tapping sound or indicate by such a sound: the clock ticked the minutes away. 6. (when: tr, often foll by off) to mark or check (something, such as a list) with a tick7. what makes someone tick informal the basic drive or motivation of a person[C13: from Low German tikk touch; related to Old High German zek?n to pluck, Norwegian tikke to touch]tick (t?k) n1. (Animals) any of various small parasitic arachnids of the families Ixodidae (hard ticks) and Argasidae (soft ticks), typically living on the skin of warm-blooded animals and feeding on the blood and tissues of their hosts: order Acarina (mites and ticks). See also sheep tick12. (Animals) any of certain other arachnids of the order Acarina3. (Animals) any of certain insects of the dipterous family Hippoboscidae that are ectoparasitic on horses, cattle, sheep, etc, esp the sheep ked[Old English ticca; related to Middle High German zeche tick, Middle Irish dega stag beetle]tick (t?k) n (Commerce) informal Brit account or credit (esp in the phrase on tick)[C17: shortened from ticket]tick (t?k) n1. (Textiles) the strong covering of a pillow, mattress, etc2. (Textiles) informal short for ticking[C15: probably from Middle Dutch t?ke; related to Old High German ziecha pillow cover, Latin t?ca case, Greek th?k?]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014tick1 (t?k) n. 1. a slight, sharp, recurring click, tap, or beat, as of a clock. 2. Brit. Informal. a moment or instant. 3. a small dot, mark, or electronic signal, as used to mark off an item on a list, serve as a reminder, or call attention to something. 4. a. a movement in the price of a stock, bond, or option. b. the smallest possible tick on a given exchange. 5. a small contrasting spot of color on the coat of a mammal or the feathers of a bird. v.i. 6. to emit a tick, like that of a clock. 7. to pass as with ticks of a clock: The hours ticked by. v.t. 8. to sound or announce by a tick or ticks: The clock ticked the minutes. 9. to mark with a tick; check (usu. fol. by off): to tick off the items on the list. 10. tick off, Slang. to make angry. [1400?50; late Middle English tek little touch; akin to Dutch tik a touch, pat, Norwegian tikka to touch] tick2 (t?k) n. any of numerous bloodsucking arachnids of the order Acarina, related to but larger than mites, having a barbed proboscis for attachment to the skin: some are disease vectors. [before 900; Middle English teke, tyke, Old English ticia (perhaps sp. error for tiica (i.e. t?ca) or ticca)] tick3 (t?k) n. 1. the cloth case of a mattress, pillow, etc., containing hair, feathers, or the like. 2. ticking. [1425?75; late Middle English tikke, teke, tyke; compare Middle Dutch, Middle Low German t?ke, Old High German ziahha, ziecha tick, pillowcase] Random House Kernerman Webster’s College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.tick (t?k)1. Any of numerous small animals related to spiders and mites. Ticks attach themselves to the skin of humans and animals, and suck their blood. They often carry microorganisms that cause disease.2. Any of various small bloodsucking insects resembling lice that are parasites on sheep, goats, and other animals.The American Heritage® Student Science Dictionary, Second Edition. Copyright © 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.tick, tickle – Tick, as in “sound of a clock,” “mark of correctness,” originally meant “light touch, tap,” and its modern senses are recent developments; tickle is probably a derivative of this version of tick.See also related terms for tap.Farlex Trivia Dictionary. © 2012 Farlex, Inc. All rights reserved.tickPast participle: tickedGerund: tickingImperativePresentPreteritePresent ContinuousPresent PerfectPast ContinuousPast PerfectFutureFuture PerfectFuture ContinuousPresent Perfect ContinuousFuture Perfect ContinuousPast Perfect ContinuousConditionalPast ConditionalImperativeticktickPresentI tickyou tickhe/she/it tickswe tickyou tickthey tickPreteriteI tickedyou tickedhe/she/it tickedwe tickedyou tickedthey tickedPresent ContinuousI am tickingyou are tickinghe/she/it is tickingwe are tickingyou are tickingthey are tickingPresent PerfectI have tickedyou have tickedhe/she/it has tickedwe have tickedyou have tickedthey have tickedPast ContinuousI was tickingyou were tickinghe/she/it was tickingwe were tickingyou were tickingthey were tickingPast PerfectI had tickedyou had tickedhe/she/it had tickedwe had tickedyou had tickedthey had tickedFutureI will tickyou will tickhe/she/it will tickwe will tickyou will tickthey will tickFuture PerfectI will have tickedyou will have tickedhe/she/it will have tickedwe will have tickedyou will have tickedthey will have tickedFuture ContinuousI will be tickingyou will be tickinghe/she/it will be tickingwe will be tickingyou will be tickingthey will be tickingPresent Perfect ContinuousI have been tickingyou have been tickinghe/she/it has been tickingwe have been tickingyou have been tickingthey have been tickingFuture Perfect ContinuousI will have been tickingyou will have been tickinghe/she/it will have been tickingwe will have been tickingyou will have been tickingthey will have been tickingPast Perfect ContinuousI had been tickingyou had been tickinghe/she/it had been tickingwe had been tickingyou had been tickingthey had been tickingConditionalI would tickyou would tickhe/she/it would tickwe would tickyou would tickthey would tickPast ConditionalI would have tickedyou would have tickedhe/she/it would have tickedwe would have tickedyou would have tickedthey would have tickedCollins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011